The present invention relates to a system, method and apparatus for providing maintenance and support for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) apparatus. In particular, the present invention is directed to a method, system and apparatus for providing preventative maintenance for MRI apparatuses, for quickly and efficiently diagnosing faults in an MRI apparatus, and for efficiently repairing faulty MRI apparatuses.
Typically, a service log related to an MRI apparatus, such as a repair log and/or a performance/maintenance check log, is stored separately by a service provider and a customer. This log is used for various kinds of investigations, such as, for example, to find a cause of a fault that occurs in the MRI apparatus. When a fault is detected, the composition of circuit boards in the MRI apparatus is checked, the various parameters that may have been adjusted when the apparatus was installed are measured, and a cause for the fault and a malfunctioning part are pinpointed based on information contained in a maintenance manual. The result of a scheduled or routine maintenance check may be useful in many cases in determining the cause of the fault and the suspected malfunctioning part. However, because the results of such checks or routine maintenance are not stored in the MRI apparatus, and are retained in separate locations, it is difficult to access these service logs and to provide service quickly and efficiently.
There are many different kinds and types of imaging methods that can be employed in a conventional MRI apparatus. Certain special imaging methods, such as FASE and EPI, are not used frequently because they are reserved for specific diagnosis. On the other hand, general imaging methods, such as SE and FSE, are used frequently because they are used for routine diagnosis (T1, T2 and 3DMRA, etc.). It is difficult to recognize and determine degradation of the MRI apparatus by merely viewing images obtained by the general imaging methods (SE, FSE, etc.), as compared with also viewing images obtained using specialized imaging techniques such as those mentioned above (FASE, EPI, etc.) which exercise a larger range of performance of the apparatus. Therefore, even if an image actually indicates some degree of degradation, it is difficult to determine when or where the degradation of the malfunctioning part started.
Some pulse sequences that are sensitive to the condition of the apparatus are mentioned below.
(1) FSE (ETS more than 15 ms) is sensitive to the state of an eddy current, and it manifests itself as non-homogeneous sensitivity in the image and as variable signal strength in different image slices.
(2) FE-EPI is very sensitive to gradient magnetic field stability, especially offset fluctuation of the gradient magnetic field amplifier, and if there is instability, it manifests itself in the image.
(3) A fat reduction pulse sequence is sensitive to homogeneity of the magnetic field and the remains of eddy currents, and it clearly appears as uneven fat tissue indications in the image.
(4) A spin-labelling pulse sequence for perfusion imaging is sensitive to RF magnetic field stability because it measures a difference at the step of an addition average according to the generating pattern of the RF pulse, and it appears in the Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR).
There are also failure and degradation conditions of the apparatus which do not affect the quality of the image directly. In that case, it is time consuming and labor intensive to determine whether the fault or degradation conditions occurred suddenly or gradually. It is also difficult to gather related information.
In clinical inspection, it is rare that RF signals are received on one Whole Body (WB) coil. Typically, a plurality of different RF coils are used depending upon the part of the body being examined. Some of these RF coils, for example, those used for the shoulders and for knees, are not used frequently. Because of their infrequent use, the operational condition of these coils, such as achievable SNR, is not always clear because they are not checked or observed on a regular basis. Thus, the determination that they are out of order typically occurs in an untimely manner.
As mentioned above, the service log is stored at a service provider and a customer site separately, thus people who require the information contained in the service log must contact the service provider site where it is kept. Therefore, in order to ascertain the repair history and performance check history, or to determine which upgrades or accessories have been included with a particular MRI apparatus, each of these inquiries must be accomplished separately.
Since an MRI apparatus includes many different constituent units, it is difficult to confirm the part, start time and grade of malfunction when an imaging fault occurs under, for example, specific image conditions. Therefore, achieving repair becomes time consuming and inefficient. In addition, because all log data regarding each apparatus is not consolidated, it becomes particularly burdensome to statistically manage and upgrade the MRI apparatuses.
Under such conditions, for example, the following problems may occur.
(a) No one may notice that a serviceman may repair the apparatus according to incomplete or incorrect information.
(b) Since the serviceman repairs only according to the manual, it may take considerable time to confirm new troubles which are not described in the manual.
(c) It is difficult to compare the diagnostic check results of the apparatuses and analyze them to determine a trend of faults or malfunctions.
(d) Because it is difficult to confirm the upgrade record, the serviceman cannot serve the customer according to the conditions peculiar to each apparatus.
(e) If the conditions of the apparatus are such that there is the possibility of an accident or harm to a patient, no one may be alerted to the condition or notice the condition in a timely manner.
(f) It may take considerable time to exchange the units, because an order for exchange flows by way of the service provider. Exchange orders originate from the customer and are sent to a maintenance center via the service provider, and exchanges are sent directly from the maintenance center to the customer.